allAfrica.com: And Now to the Notebook

Simone Ehivet Gbagbo, the feisty first lady of the Ivory Coast, is one lady who doesn't mince words when it comes to combating HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Madame Gbagbo shocked delegates at a recent West African summit of 10 African first ladies when she told the stunned room that she was surprised when she checked into her room in Kigali, Rwanda, to find there were no condoms supplied by the hotel.

"I came to Rwanda to discuss HIV/AIDS, but when I searched my hotel room for a condom, I couldn't find any," said Gbagbo. Bristled, the mother of seven: "If I can find toothpaste in a hotel room, I should also be able to find a condom." Gbagbo is however very right.

In societies such as Zimbabwe, one usually attracts furtive glances from both males and females just by merely asking for the price of a brand of condoms. Come on Zimbabweans, bees do it . . . and even First Ladies do it. Let's do away with the stigma associated with HIV and the first step is to have condoms easily accessible to those who want to do it.

Even archbishops do it Still on the subject of sex, lust and its consequences, my favourite Catholic priest, Zambian archbishop Emmanuel Milingo has finally decided that 71 years of sleeping alone is just too much. The celebrated African man of the cloth last week decided to get married but, as usual, was not going to do it the way you and me might. Why spend time courting, proposing and finally marrying the woman or man of your dreams like an ordinary person? Milingo, never one to shy away from controversy, decided the quickest way to get hitched and once again rankle those bishops that surround Pope John Paul was to have none other than Reverend Sun Myung Moon to get him the bride and then marry him. Rev Moon, by the way, is the Korean leader of the Unification Church which the Vatican has denounced. Before one could say "Holy Mother of Christ", Milingo, the charming Zambian archbishop reputed to possess extraordinary healing powers, was married to Korean acupuncturist Mary Sung. Of course the Vatican, where Milingo has been exiled from his beloved Zambian congregation for the past 19 years, was not amused. In a thinly veiled statement, Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said by participating in the public wedding conducted by Moon, Milingo had placed himself outside the Catholic Church. The good bishop is however not worried. He said he is looking forward to having a family at 71 years old "if God will allow it".

By the way, is Moon's Unification Church whose congregation here was once embroiled in a fight over properties, still existing in Zimbabwe? Law and Order at the Sunday Mail Readers of this column would be glad to know that things have now somewhat stabilised at the Sunday Mail, the government's weekend mouthpiece, where some journalists had decided to do "a Chinotimba" and invaded some offices. At the same time Home Affairs Minister John Nkomo was reading the riot act to Chinotimba and company, William Chikoto, the affable editor of the Mail, decided that enough was enough and evicted two senior reporters who had done a fast- track to promotion. Chikoto, obviously with the approval of the man who pulls the strings, reshuffled his newsroom promoting almost every senior journalist minus the duo but reports from the glass and mortar building say those two gentlemen are known fighters who might not take their sidelining lying down. Watch this space.

Plagiarism at the Daily News We have mentioned before that Zimbabwean newspapers are plagiarising our exclusive stories almost on a daily basis without even having the decency to acknowledge that they had lifted them. The Daily News on Tuesday carried a story that was headlined: "Commander tells soldiers not to vote for Tsvangirai". That story is a carbon copy but shortened version of our lead story last week that read, "Army chief decampaigns MDC". Check the similarities in one paragraph. The Financial Gazette: "The army commander had also made it clear at these meetings - 'dubbed ZNA political rallies' - that no 'self respecting' soldier should ever consider saluting Tsvangirai." The Daily News on Tuesday: "The meetings, dubbed 'ZNA political rallies', have seen the commander telling the soldiers that no 'self respecting soldier' should ever consider voting for Morgan Tsvangirai . . ." Well at least the reporter at the Daily News had the ingenuity to change "saluting" to "voting" but surely the byline should have read: By a Financial Gazette Reporter. It doesn't hurt to be honest, even once.


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